VW up! shifts to auto manual gearbox
August 2, 2012 
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Volkswagen is adding an auto-manual gearbox option to its recently-released up! city car.
The ASG ‘box costs £595 and is said to improve fuel consumption and emissions over a manual gearbox.
The creators of the ASG believe it will add to the appeal of the up! for motorists facing regular journeys in urban environments with heavy congestion.
The ASG is effectively an automated version of the manual gearbox. The driver selects D (Drive), N (Neutral) or R (Reverse) (there is no P (Park) using the gear lever, and the gearbox switches to the optimum gear for the situation.
The driver can also change up or down manually using the gear lever – there are no steering wheel paddle shifts as on most auto/manual ‘boxes.
Fuel consumption is improved by around 1.4 to 1.8mpg and 2-3g/km of CO2 emissions.
The ASG is available on three and five-door Move up! and High up! models, apart from BlueMotion Technology versions.
Words by: Andrew Charman
Smart has been using these for years